Chapter 3: Observation Haki with a Sharingan Twist?
Hearing that voice, the moment he sat up on the bed, Riven D. Dante was the first to jump up in excitement and rush toward the door.
Buggy, on the other hand, wore a bitter face.
He really didn't like grueling training. Anyway, with so many powerhouses on the ship, when it came to robbing treasure, it wasn't like he'd ever be the main force.
But when he saw Dante and Shanks sprinting toward the stern of the ship, not wanting to be left behind, he forced himself to act calm and followed along:
"Wait for me, you two!"
The three of them exited the cabin and headed toward the stern. Along the way, they passed several burly men who had drunk too much and collapsed on the ground.
They were long since used to such random banquets happening anywhere and anytime. Each of the three went into the storage room to pick a weapon.
Buggy chose throwing knives, Shanks favored a western sword,
And Dante, after a moment of consideration, picked up a flintlock pistol.
It was the result of deep thought.
Not only did it complement his innate Observation Haki, making him suited to being the sly one in battle, but there was another reason…
The sword path was too overcrowded.
Earlier there was Golden Lion, Roger, and Rayleigh. Later there would be Red-Haired Shanks, Hawkeye Mihawk, and in the future, even that three-swords Zoro…
Trying to make a name in the swordsman circle? Dante felt the cost-performance was way too low.
If he was going to do it, he'd aim to be the very best. That was the only way worthy of his heaven-defying start. But on the path of the great swordmasters, leaving aside whether he even had the talent to learn swordsmanship,
Even if he did somehow claw his way up and become the so-called World's Strongest Swordsman, he'd probably just end up being chased and chopped at day after day by Mihawk and Zoro.
Forever hearing in his ears: "Accept my challenge! I'm the man who will become the world's greatest swordsman!"
That alone would drive him insane.
So why not become the world's greatest gunman instead!
After all, coming from his former world, Dante had always had a natural fascination with firearms. And with his innate Observation Haki,
The best part? This path wasn't crowded.
The famous snipers in the future would only be: Yasopp, Usopp, Van Augur, and maybe Ben Beckman. That was it. A niche path, not crowded.
Dante felt he wasn't inferior to any of them.
Once he developed Conqueror's Coating, "Observation Killing" or future sight, then stocked up on Seastone bullets…
Maybe he couldn't one-shot a Yonko,
But one-shotting a Yonko Commander? That wasn't too much to ask. Shanks could one-shot a 3-billion bounty guy with one swing, after all.
When his skills reached perfection and he had Yonko-level strength, he'd travel the world enjoying life, witnessing every legendary scene, and when old, buy a few maids, a small manor, and live it up.
In his previous life he'd been a wage slave—miserable. This time he was determined to live it to the fullest.
But… dreams were sweet, reality bitter. Right now, he was still just a child with innate Observation Haki and a slightly stronger body.
Though Rayleigh was, frankly, a "misleading" teacher, he should at least be able to teach solid fundamentals.
Might as well learn what he could.
Next came Dante's very first lesson aboard the ship.
"Martial arts are the foundation of all combat, whether you use swords or fists.
Even if you use a ranged weapon like a gun, you still need sharp reflexes and Haki to stand undefeated."
For the three brats growing up in the New World, the word "Haki" wasn't unfamiliar, so Rayleigh didn't bother explaining further.
Instead, he turned to look at the weapons they had chosen.
"Beyond martial arts, everyone develops the combat style they excel at. So then…" Rayleigh glanced at the three, taking a sip of alcohol.
"Tell me what you want to learn. If I know it, I'll teach you my experience and techniques."
"I want to learn swordsmanship!" Shanks answered right away, utterly focused. Perhaps influenced by Roger and Rayleigh, he had a deep love for the long sword.
"Swordsmanship, eh?" Rayleigh chuckled. "Then starting today, five thousand swings every day. First, master the most basic grip."
Then his gaze shifted to Buggy. "Short knives aren't much different from swords. Start by practicing swings."
Finally, his eyes settled on Dante, whose gaze was burning with intensity. Since he didn't know this kid well, Rayleigh asked what he wanted to learn.
"Anything's possible to learn?"
"Of course. But if you're looking to learn gunnery, our sniper Beitam never misses a shot…"
"Then I want to learn Conqueror's Coating!"
"Pfft…!!"
Dante's shocking words nearly made Rayleigh spray his drink five meters away.
Wiping the corner of his mouth, Rayleigh scolded:
"Brat, I don't know where you heard that term, but those advanced techniques—forget it. At the very least, you'd need the qualification of Conqueror's Haki!"
In other words, Dante might not even have Conqueror's. How could he talk about coating it?
But Dante didn't mind at all. He was just taking a shot in the dark:
"Well then… if I do have Conqueror's, Uncle Rayleigh, will you teach me?"
"Why not?"
Rayleigh dismissed it as childish ignorance and agreed casually.
Soon after, the three apprentices began their most basic training.
Dante bore the weight of massive iron plates on his back, doing one-handed push-ups while reading a newspaper on the floor.
At the same time, he continued training his Observation Haki.
In his senses, Shanks was swinging his sword with sweat streaming down, his young face deadly serious.
Buggy was training too—but by deliberately slowing his movements, Dante could tell the guy was slacking off.
"Shanks… his swings seem sharper each time." When Dante finally finished his strength training, Shanks had also just completed his five thousand swings.
So this was what they called a swordsmanship genius?
Visible progress, right before his eyes. Dante, sly as always, secretly observed Shanks' improvements, memorizing the techniques in his heart.
While Shanks was doing strength drills, Dante picked up the long sword Shanks had left on the ground, recalled the flow of energy and movement he'd sensed earlier, and started practicing sword swings himself.
"What a greedy little brat."
Up on the lookout, a long-haired man wearing small sunglasses watched Dante training at the stern and said to the blond fat man beside him:
"Wants to learn guns and swords both. If he comes to me asking about axes, I'm not teaching him."
"Normally I'd never approve of a sniper messing around with swords. But he's a little different," said Beitam, the Roger Pirates' sharpshooter and Observation Haki specialist. He had noticed something.
"This kid Dante… he's stealing Shanks' effort."
And indeed—
What Shanks had to swing five thousand times to grasp and refine, Dante perfectly mastered after imitating just a thousand times. This discovery left Dante delighted.
"Holy crap… Observation Haki with a Sharingan twist?"
Though his innate Observation Haki didn't cover a wide range—after years of effort it reached only a few dozen meters—
It was different from others. While the scope was limited, its detail level was maxed out from the start.
Every tiny shift and technique escaped no part of his perception.
So besides raw power, when it came to learning skills, he was naturally twice as effective with half the effort.
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